MIAMI — A federal judge says he will rule in a few days on a request by convicted hijacker Tony Bryant to let him fly again so he can spread his anti-communism message nationwide.

Bryant, 47, is the former Black Panther who hijacked a National Airlines jet to Havana on a flight from New York to Miami on March 5, 1969. He then spent 12 years in Cuban prisons before being repatriated in 1980 to stand trial in the United States.

Upon his return he became an outspoken opponent of communism.

Bryant published a book titled Hijack which recounts his early years as a member of the militant Black Panthers and tells of the hijacking.

A judge sentenced him to five years probation. He has served four years and two months of the term. Court officials said Bryant hasn't been in any trouble during that period but they have imposed new restrictions on him that make travel more difficult.

Bryant was told this week that he would not be permitted to board an Eastern Airlines flight to Atlanta after an officer from the U.S. Probation Office told the airline of the 1969 hijacking.

Bryant asked U.S. District Judge Eugene Spellman Friday to lift the remaining 10 months of his probation sentence, freeing him to travel.

Spellman heard objections from Assistant U.S. Attorney Leonard Baer and said he would rule on Bryant's request in a few days.